An icon of the Virgin Mary has been stolen from a monastery in Greece. A police operation headed by the deputy chief of national police is underway to find the 700-year-old replica. The icon is thought to have cured the sick and protect those who believed in its powers. People believe the icon's powers will bring tragedy to both the party who stole it and the people who relied on its protection.

Christmas cards signed by Britain's royal family were sold at an auction Tuesday. The cards, that fetched a total of 5,500 pounds ($10,400), included photo cards signed by Prince Charles and the late Princess Diana. Cottees auction house in Wareham, in the south-western county of Dorset, said 13 cards sent by Queen Elizabeth, Prince Philip and the late Queen Mother to the King and Queen of Greece in the late 1970s and early 1980s, were purchased by a London collector.

Bank robbers in Greece boldly used their car to smash through the front door of a bank in Athens, stole money and drove out. Using a Fiat, which was stolen, stunned customers and bank personnel looked on as the two men committed their brazen burglary act. A police official told Reuters that men robbed a Piraeus Bank, located in the Peristeri region of Athens. According to the officials, "Two men got out of the car, took out guns and robbed the bank. "

Bulgaria has impounded 20-year-old Irish beef that may have entered its processed food industry. Authorities last month blocked three trucks that held 75-tons of discolored meat at the country's border with Greece. They suspected the papers held by the trucks were not in order.

Months after a Connecticut man disappears from a cruise ship during his honeymoon, the victim's family is convinced foul play is to blame. George Allen Smith IV vanished July 5 from a Miami-based Royal Caribbean ship in the Mediterranean Sea between Greece and Turkey. His body was never found. Smith's sister, Bree Smith, says, "We have no closure, as we have no answers. George has not surfaced, so we have no body to bury and we have no grave to pray at. "